-.. ,<' " '\ t ,'" :t=, . .", , , ..... 1, " (> . --... .. ..... . . \ (} ,:,;' 1> {) \' , ! . " & , G- c.:. of_f \ -;- .."' ... ".. . _...... p;/:.: f () c q , . . <) ,. . ''\ ""., v _. ""'of ..... . o .... " , CI "11, Co , ..' ,... \' '; \ \ ;' <> -- ...., "..-.,. ('" 9 " ', ':', . .ft . t Ii ,- , , , '1 \ '. :: !.'f Q,. , 0 -- , ,II I 0-- s ...: I , Pc .--<< f. -- '" . k; - , , . Ò' .."\ ! ... - .. \ ..- _-..::" -i , ":::::: . .;::"): ....; ....::w;...: ",'joIO, " { f::\ "J( v 't'-" " . (J ....... . O' ,-, Ò _ , 1 o . <\ M . t " '" ,) \ ,\ ; . ,4 l' oJ . f. ' " . .' Sculptures made primarily if tires, by Chakaia Booker, at Marlborough. clarity of a foreign visitor not yet acclimated to his new surroundings, the pictures are flooded with incredible, big-sky light. By this point, Shore has spawned so many imitators that his subjects and landscapes-thin-mouthed old people, a chipped mint-green ranch house, an empty high- way under a tumbling whorl of cloud-all have the ring of the familiar, though Shore's unironic matter-of-factness is distinctly his. Particularly fine is "J.]' Summers Ajency," a Hopperesque picture of a blank storefront, its muted colors soft and velvety. There's nOthing harsh or snarky about these pictures--even a on its blond- wood stand, appears dignified. Through Oct. 25. (303 Gallery, 525 22nd St. 212-255-1121.) HIROSHI SUGIMOTO These large-scale, blurred black-and-white pho- tographs of iconic buildings are so incomparably beautiful and tactile that looking almost isn't enough; one yearns to reach out and touch them. The photos are reductive, but in the best possible way; the structures are distinct enough to be rec- ognizable, but, as they're stripped of their usual accoutrements (sunlight, color, people), we're in- vited to see them anew, and the experience is both startling and intoxicatingly disorienting. The buildings themselves appear inscrutable and SUI- prisingly organic, as complex and unfathomable as any human being. Who knew, for example, that the Guggenheim Bilbao, without its hard titanium gleam, could be revealed as a sinuous crustacean's carapace, its bulk both menacing and touchingly awkward? Sugimoto is a master of light and shadows, and these photos-ren- dered in soft shades of silver and gray-are sim- ply wondrous. Through Nov. 1. (Sonnabend, 536 W 22nd St. 212-627-1018.) Short List ROBERT MAPPlETHORPE Kelly, 528 29th St. 212-239-1181. Through Oct. 18. AUCTIONS AND ANTIQUES SOTHEBY'S Oct. 17 at 10:15 A.M. and 2: Watches, wrist- watches, and clocks.. Oct. 17 at 10:15 A.M. and 2: Photographs from the collection of the late James J. Rochlis, including works by Edward Wes- ton, Man Ray, and Ansel Adams. . Oct. 20 at 10:15 A.M. and 2 and Oct. 21 at 10:15 A.M.: En- 50 THE NEW YOR.KER., OCTOBER. 20, 2003 glish furniture, ceramICS, and decorations from the New Mexico home of the Dowager Duchess of Bedford. + Oct. 21 at 7: Like the clothes he de- signed, the home furnishings of the fashion icon Bill Blass, who died last June, conveyed a sense of casual American luxury that denoted wealth, Sta- tus, and ease. This huge sale of furniture, art work, and bibelots from Blass's collection (which contin- ues Oct. 22-23) Includes a seventeenth-century Dutch painting depicting an aerial view of the siege of Vercelli and a Roman marble bust of a young man from the Julio-Claudian period, along with such oddities as a collection of wooden models of staircases and a Japanese giant lobster in coppered bronze. (York Ave. at 72nd St. 212-606-7000.) CHRISTIE'S Oct. 15 at 10 A.M. and 2: High-carat-count jew- elry, including a ruby-and-diamond necklace owned by Eva Perón that became a fixture of of- ficial portraits and commemorative stamps. . OCt. 20 at 2: A collection of classic photographs by Evans, Avedon, Doisneau, Man Ray, and others. One hopes the same party might acquire both Ansel Adams's apocalyptic shot of the Tetons and Garry Winogrand's laughing enchantress in "Women Are Beautiful" and hang them side by side-their exultance in natural beauty is as mutual as their methods are unalike.. Oct. 21 at 10 A.M.: Fine and decorative art works from Russia and by Russian artists, largely from the Imperial period. (20 Rockefeller Plaza, at 49th St. 212-636-2000.) PHilLIPS Oct. 16 at 10 A.M. and 2: The fortunes of this upstart house may be hard to follow, but pho- tography has emerged as one of its strong suits. The new season begins with items from the Joshua P. Smith collection. + Oct. 17 at 7 and Oct. 18 at 10 A.M. and 2: A three-part sale of photographs. (450 15th St. 212-940-1200.) SWANN Oct. 16 at 10:30 A.M.: A complete edition of Fitzgerald's "The Cruise of the Rolling Junk" (a humorous, three-part magazine article describing a trip with Zelda from Connecticut to Alabama in a broken-down car) and a signed, first-edition copy of Joyce's "Ulysses" are the highlights of a sale of books. . Oct. 21 at 10:30 A.M.: Photo- graphs. (104 E. 25th St. 212-254-4710.) PARK AVENUE ANTIQUES SHOW The Wendy firm's latest presentation, a show featuring forty-five international dealers offering furniture, silver, paintings, jewelry, and a range of other items. (Wallace Hall, Park Ave. at 84th St. 914-698-3442. Oct. 16-19.) CLASSICAL MUSIC OPERA METROPOLITAN OPERA "Le N ozze di Figaro," with Alexandra Deshort- ies, Dorothea Röschmann, J ossie Pérez, John Relyea, and Dwayne Croft; James Levine con- ducts. (Oct. 15 at 8.) + With Anja Harteros and Katarina Karnéus replacing Deshorties and Pérez. (Oct. 18 at 8.) . John Dexter's singing- dancing triple bill "Stravinsky" (comprising "Le Sacre du Printemps," "Le Rossignol," and "Oedipus Rex") returns to the house, featur- ing, in various roles, the singers Stephanie Blythe, Olga Makarina, Ronald Naldi, Robert Gambill, Evgenij Nikitin, and Eric Halfvarson, the dancers Julie Kent and Damian Woetzel, and the actor Philip Bosco. Doug Varone provides some dauntingly athletic new choreography for "Le Sacre"; Valery Gergiev conducts all three works. (Oct. 16 at 8.). How strange that Renée Fleming is just now singing her first Violetta at the Met; the rare opulence of her voice finally gives Franco Zeffirelli's production of "La Travi- ata" the musical luxuries it demands. Gergiev conducts his first Met take on Verdi's score, drawing out lush yet fevered lines of disquiet; Ramón Vargas's début Alfredo is attractively workmanlike (if vocally average); and Dmitri Hvorostovsky's seasoned Germont bleeds with dark, fatherly dignity. (Oct. 17 at 8.) + With Rolando Villazon (in his début) replacing Var- gas; Paul Nadler conducts. (Oct. 21 at 8.) . "La Bohème" returns to the repertory, with Hei- Kyung Hong, Zvetelina Vassileva, Roberto Aronica, and Richard Zeller; Daniel,Oren. (Oct. 18 at 1:30.) . The first performance this season of "11 Barbiere di Siviglia" features Susanne Mentzer as Rosina, leading a cast that also in- cludes Antonino Siragusa (a début), Russell Braun, and John Del Carlo; Bruno Campanella. (Oct. 20 at 7:30.) (Metropolitan Opera House. 212-362-6000.) NEW YORK CITY OPERA The Paul Kellogg regime at City Opera has al- ways had a silly streak, but Mark Lamos's new production of "La Finta Giardiniera" goes too far. Attempting to remedy the unwieldy libretto of the eighteen-year-old Mozart's lovely but in- frequently performed opera, the director recasts this muddled aristocratic comedy as a single extended mad scene set in a spa for wayward lovers; the pants role of Ramiro is transformed into that of a cross-dressing lesbian. Lamos runs his singers through some amusing sex gags, but most of the already complicated plot is ren- dered unintelligible, and the fine singing of Lisa Saffer, Brenda Harris, and Julianne Borg pro- vides the only true enjoyment to be found on- stage; George Manahan's brisk conducting has never been more welcome. (Oct. 16 at 7:30.) + Sanford Sylvan, a baritone of soothing sound and rich experience, takes the role of the Speaker in a revival of Lotfi Mansouri's pro- duction of "The Magic Flute" (sung in English), anchoring the efforts of an engaging young cast that features Jennifer Aylmer, Amanda Pabyan, Tonna Miller., John McVeigh, Dean Anthony, Philip Cutlip, and Gustav Andreassen in the leading roles; Steven Mosteller conducts. (Oct. 17 at 8.) . The tenor Anthony Dean Griffey leads the cast of Carlisle Floyd's "Of Mice and Men" (based on the Steinbeck novel), which also features Joel Sorensen, Nancy Allen Lundy, and Rod Nelman; Willie Anthony Waters. (Oct. 18 at 1:30.) + Jonathan Miller's rollicking pro- duction of "The Mikado" returns to the house, featuring Anna Christy, Myrna Paris, Keith J arneson, Richard Suart, and J an Opalach (in the title role); Gerald SteIchen. (Oct. 18 at 8.) + "Carmen," with Hadar Halevy and Mi- chael Hendrick as Carmen and Don José, An- z gela Fout as Micaëla, and Kelly Anderson as Escamillo; Steven White. (Oct. 19 at 1 :30 and Oct. 21 at 7:30.) (New York State Theatre. 212-870-5570.)